In a book that covers a host of fascinating light-related topics such as the hues of alien sunsets to the psychology of colour, Mark Lorch and Andy Miah provide an illuminating insight into how and why we see the universe the way we do.

A Flash of Light was written in just a weekend in a novel experiment at the 2015 Manchester Science Festival, in which Dr Lorch and Professor Miah challenged a group of academics to write a book with the public watching over their

shoulders. Dr Lorch said: “fuelled with caffeine and take-out and inspired by each other’s company, we knocked out a book that we are really very proud of”.

If you have ever wondered about the science of colour and light, and want some simple and fun “try this at home” ideas, this book can be yours for just £12. The book can be purchased here and found as an e-book from online retailers.

Don’t forget that Royal Society of Chemistry members, authors and reviews are eligible for discounts off our books. Please contact our books team for your discount code.

With contributions from leading international experts, each book in the series covers key themes in polymer chemistry research providing the perfect introduction for graduate students and researchers.

Series Editor-in-chief Ben Zhong Tang, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, says “our series has published books over a wide variety of important topics in the area of polymer research, from fundamental studies to practical techniques, benefiting a large spectrum of audience. The success is due to the enthusiastic support of our editors and authors. I must thank the editorial staff of Royal Society of Chemistry, especially Leanne Marle, for their very professional assistance over the years.”

Diana Yuzhakova from Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod in Russia and Giulia Zampini from the Università degli Studi di Perugia in Italy win prizes for their posters

A school on photobiology was held in Brixen from 20-25 June 2016. The European Photobiology Society initiated this bi-annual school to inspire graduate students and early-stage researchers to be the photobiologists of the future. This year, 45 students enthusiastically participated, and also presented their research as posters.Three faculty members had the hard task of judging the presented posters: two of them were chosen for prizes. Diana Yuzhakova from Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod (Russia) was awarded a fellowship to participate in the 2017 ESP congress in Pisa (Italy). Giulia Zampini from the Università degli Studi di Perugia (Italy) was awarded the two-volume book Singlet Oxygen: Applications in Biosciences and Nanosciences edited by S. Nonell and C. Flors.

These international nanotechnology symposia, which will be hosted simultaneously as parallel sessions, promote the gathering of scientists, students and industry experts to exchange and enhance their knowledge and vanguard ideas for future applications.

Supramolecular Chemistry at Surfaces covers different methods of preparing and studying self-assembled structures at surfaces and interfaces. Written by a leading expert in the field, this is the first book to give a multidisciplinary view of the supramolecular aspects of interfaces providing the reader with an objective summary of all the deposition methods and their characterisation. The book will appeal to students and researchers in supramolecular chemistry, nanoscience, polymer chemistry and physics, surface science and materials science.

Led by Series Editors Hans-Jorg Schneider, Universität des Saarlandes, Germany and Mohsen Shahinpoor, University of Maine, USA, the series covers the fundamentals and applications of different functional material systems from renowned international experts. The first book in the series was published in 2012 on Janus Particle Synthesis, Self-Assembly and Applications edited by Shan Jiang and Steve Granick, since then the series has continued to cover key topics such as opto-electronics, smart materials for drug delivery and chemoresponsive materials.

An important international forum for experts from across the world, this three day event held at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN) will highlight the very latest research and open discussion in all fire and hazard related topics. Up for discussion will be: lessons learned from major fire disasters, smoke toxicity and the effect of combustion conditions, clinical care of fire smoke injury, forensic investigations of fire toxicity, the physiological effect of fire toxicants and more.

Speakers offering their insights into these topics are some of the fire prevention leaders in Europe, including Juergen Troitszch, Fire and Environment Protection Service, Germany, Peter Holland, UK Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser and Tommy Kiaer, Vice President of the European Fire Fighters Unions Alliance. In addition, experts from the University of Leuven, Effectis, University of Waterloo, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, SP Technical Research Institute and the European Commission with also deliver their latest fire hazard research findings, hypotheses and advice.

The Royal Society of Chemistry has also recently published this related book entitled Toxicology, Survival and Health Hazards of Combustion Products. You can purchase this book in the Royal Society of Chemistry bookshop or you can read the first chapter for free through your Personal RSC Publishing Account.

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Toxicology, Survival and Health Hazards of Combustion Products

Edited by David A. Purser, Robert L. Maynard and James C. Wakefield

Fires are a common source of exposure to smoke and a range of toxicologically active chemicals. Providing a complete overview of the subject, this book provides comprehensive and detailed information on combustion processes, estimation of rate of production of combustion products, dispersion of these products and their effects on health.

Beginning with a chapter discussing the chemistry of combustion and detailing the mechanisms of burning, how different materials ignite and the nature of combustion products, the book goes on to examine specific combustion products in detail, the toxicity and carcinogenicity of the products, their dispersion and methods of monitoring.

In addition to primary research and reviews, photochemists, photobiologists and aspiring students can need more. In response to the identified need for comprehensive information sources that cover well-established and emerging fields in depth, in 2001 the European Society for Photobiology (ESP) and the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) agreed to launch a series of books in photoscience. The series title leaves little untold about its purpose: Comprehensive Series in Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences.

Browsing through some documents from the time of its launch, we ran into instructions for authors that suggest manuscripts should be submitted “together with a set of disks (or CD-ROM)…” Today, floppy disks are useless, compact disks are a vintage technology and we submit our scientific papers by clicking on touchscreen devices. So much has changed, but the book series has maintained its high scientific standards and best original features, thanks to the vision of committed previous series editors (Donat-Peter Haeder and the late Giulio Jori).

5000 pages later…

Thirteen books (and over 5000 pages!) have now been published, covering very cool and interesting fields, giving – as the series editors wrote in the foreword of the first published volume – a critical evaluation of the directions that the field is taking. If you glance at the published titles, you will see the results of hard and dedicated work from many chapter authors and volume editors from around the world.

The Executive Committee of the ESP met in September 2015 in Aveiro, Portugal during the biennial Congress of the Society. The Committee has given the three of us the prestigious roles of Series Editors of the book series. We are flattered and honoured by this office. We are committed to work hard to maintain the standards of the Series and to source and invite new edited volumes on important topics.

And what now?

Very soon, two new volumes will be available. Surface Water Photochemistry, edited by Paola Calza and Davide Vione, is now available and it explores the latest research on the photochemical fate of organic pollutants in surface water. Singlet Oxygen, edited by Santi Nonell and Cristina Flors, comprises two volumes that present the physical, chemical and biological properties of this reactive oxygen species and its increasingly important applications across chemical, environmental and biomedical areas. Look out for this book in early 2016.

Currently, we are scouring the literature, attending conferences and speaking to our colleagues to decide what are the topics that have developed significantly in the last few years and that could now do with a new edited book covering the field. The series will be open to and will expand to include any topic where an in-depth coverage need is defined.

Thanks to the impending publication of two new titles, a new series Editorial Board, and beautiful new cover designs, it looks like an exciting new start for the Comprehensive Series in Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences. We do welcome feedback on books in the series and ideas for areas we should cover in future. To get in touch, please email us at books@rsc.org.

“…the idea was to use stories from the history of 19th and 20th-century chemistry to encourage a better understanding of how chemists work and the centrality of chemistry to the working of our modern world.”

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The reviews say:

“Each essay is itself a mine of glorious nuggets of information … offering the reader such gems as the sock story, an entertaining song about sewerage, and the involvement of the Chemist Justus Liebig with the origins of Fray Bentos corned beef and Oxo.” Georgette Taylor Metascience

“Science historian William H Brock sticks to his scholarship in assembling this collection of 42 short essays, and he tells them in an entertaining manner that facilitates learning and subsequent retelling.” Bob Kenworthy Chemical Heritage, Fall 2012/Winter 2013

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The best cure for muscle and joint pain is ibuprofen, which suppresses the excess arachidonic acid that is the cause.

“…if you’ve ever wondered what’s in popular medicines, laundry liquids, cosmetics, toilet cleaners, diet drinks, weedkillers, and even WD40, then this book reveals all. [It] helps people understand what they are using, and to pierce the web of chemistry misinformation that’s spun by some in the media.”

“The First World War and especially the chemistry that underpinned the war fascinate me. The lethal explosives, incendiaries, and poison gases used in the war were all discovered and developed by chemists, but so were the anaesthetics, antiseptics, painkillers and disinfectants employed in the casualty clearing stations and military hospitals. I wanted to write a book that covered all the chemical aspects of the war and described the contributions of chemists to the war effort and the care of the sick and wounded.”

The reviews say:

“It is well written, extensively referenced and includes a useful last chapter on the top 50 chemicals of the Great War. There is a lot of interesting chemistry but the human story is also strong.”

“…a remarkably diverse collection of essays … The book will appeal to the general reader as well as the many scientists and historians interested in the Great War.” Popular Science

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While Herschel may have believed that there was indeed a true absence of stars in such regions, an alternative explanation is simpler: that something in the foreground is obscuring the optical light of the background stars.

“Chemistry has been operating in the universe ever since the first simple elements appeared after the Big Bang. We describe the chemical story of the universe, from the formation of the first stars and galaxies, to the birth of stars and galaxies in the present epoch. If that’s your bag, this is your book.”

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Markov was unaware that beneath the skin of his leg was a minute pellet containing one of the deadliest of all poisons…

“The book is about 10 deadly molecules and the murders in which they were used. My reason for writing the book was to tap into the public’s appetite for true crime dramas and to show how important is the role of chemistry.”

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The reviews say:

“This book is clearly written and much easier to digest than the compounds it describes … Emsley has written a book that satisfies the true-crime reader as well as the science-orientated specialist … I’m sure Gil Grisson, former head of the forensic investigation team in the TV Show “CSI” would have a copy on his shelf.” Charles Tumosa Chemical and Engineering News, Feb 2 2009, Volume 87, Number 05

“…each chapter is full of interesting nuggets of information that you just don’t find in the standard toxicology textbooks … Highly recommended, too, for anybody who enjoys a good thriller!” Safety and Health Practitioner

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…the innovation of the whisky blend, attributed to Andrew Usher in the early 1860s, was ripe for exploitation by the so-called whisky barons towards the end of the 19th century.

“We recognised a need for a fresh and up-to-date approach to a fast-moving topic that would appeal to both students and enthusiasts.Gaininsights into and appreciation of one of the world’s favourite spirits.”

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The reviews say:

“The authors have clearly put much effort into this book… I enjoyed the book almost as much as I enjoy whisky. I imagine it will also be enjoyed by many chemists with no taste for whisky. Fascinating stuff from cover to cover.” Ian W Davies Chromatographia (2014) 77:1733-1734

“The entire journey between barley and the final product is explained with a host of scientific details.” Jean-Marie Putz http://www.whisky-distilleries.info

The annual Macrocyclic and Supramolecular Chemistry Group meeting organised by Prof. Jonathan W. Steed will take place next month. The Royal Society of Chemistry will have a booth so come and browse our newly published books in the Monographs is Supramolecular Chemistry series!

MASC is a long running conference series that attracts prominent international speakers and provides an excellent forum for PhD students and postdocs to showcase their work. The group is chaired by Prof. Philip Gale and past group chairmen have included Prof. Thorfinnur Gunnlaugsson, Prof. Peter Tasker, Prof. Bob Hay, Prof. Martin Schroder, Prof. David Parker FRS and Prof. Paul Beer. More information and details about how to register can be found on the MASC website.

New books published

The following books have been recently published in our Monographs in Supramolecular Chemistry series. You can purchase any of these books in the Royal Society of Chemistry bookshop or you can read the first chapter for free through your Personal RSC Publishing Account.

Pillararenes

Pillararenes are a new class of macrocyclic hosts, which have applications in sensing, material synthesis and biomedicine. This book covers all aspects of Pillararene synthesis, their host-guest properties and supramolecular assemblies. This book is edited by the leader in this field and will appeal to graduate students and academics alike.

Polyrotaxane and Slide-Ring Materials

Polyrotaxane is a necklace-like supramolecule in which many cyclic molecules can be threaded and cross-linked together to form functional polymeric materials. The resulting movable cross-linked structure yields unique properties with potential applications in new films, elastomers and coatings. This book, authored by the inventor of slide-ring materials, provides a comprehensive guide to slide-ring synthesis, functionality, analysis and application.

Synthetic receptor molecules mimic antibody recognition and are widely used in sensing and drug development. This book covers the most effective synthetic receptors for each major class of biomolecules. The book is written in an accessible style making it appeal to those new to supramolecular chemistry as well as those looking for information on specific synthetic receptors.

The following books will be published in the next couple of weeks and can be pre-ordered now:

Boron: Sensing, Synthesis and Supramolecular Self-Assembly

This book provides a comprehensive overview of recent developments in the field of boronic acid-based receptors. The synthesis and self assembly of these receptors are covered in detail together with the applications of boron in chemical molecular sensors. Containing contributions from leading research groups in this field, this book will appeal to researchers of all levels in organic chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, materials science and bio-organic chemistry.

Porous Polymers: Design, Synthesis and Applications

Porous materials with very large internal surface areas are of great interest for applications in energy storage and environmental remediation. This book describes the significant recent progress in the development of different porous frameworks, with particular focus on the relationship between structure design, synthesis methods and properties. The book provides a comprehensive overview of different porous polymer systems, which will be of interest researchers and graduate students alike.

“With an ever increasing amount of innovation in the life sciences sector, how can we maximise research and development productivity?”

The ABPI have a host of senior speakers confirmed from within the biopharmaceutical industry and across the breadth of the UK life sciences community.
If you are part of the life science community, including colleagues from academia, government, NHS, charities, funders, patient group representatives and industry, this conference will be a unique opportunity for you to:

highlight innovative research that has opened the door to novel therapeutics

hear about the evolving model of drug discovery and the impact for both the biopharmaceutical industry and wider UK stakeholders in R&D

showcase innovative practices that that will improve R&D productivity and accelerate access to medicines

network with peers and colleagues at the post-conference drinks reception

The ABPI R&D Conference 2015 has been approved by the following institutions for the purposes of CPD: